EGR Valve

[indybyron]

Well the saga continues the O/D light seams to be fixed or not an issue atm. But they were also able to tell me that my EGR valve is not opening what ever that means. Anyhow my question now is where the heck is it located is it something i can deal with or is it a mechanic issue?

 

[1998Exp]

The EGR valve passes a small amount of exhaust gas into the intake manifold. This reduces the combustion temperature and prevents NOx emissions. The EGR action is controlled by the engine management computer through a solenoid valve, which regulates the amount of vacuum applied to the EGR valve. There is also feedback to the computer. In later models the feedback is the actual amount of EGR flow, measured by a component called DPFE. These are very prone to failure, but I doubt that your vehicle has one. More likely, it uses a position sensor mounted on top of the EGR valve (called EVP if memory serves).
So there are several components involved, and the problem is not necessarily the valve the itself. Unless you want to spend a lot of money and effort with low probability of success, you need to diagnose it before attempting to replace any parts. That's about as far as I can go here without writing a book... It's not rocket science. You need some basic tools and some knowledge how things work -- or a friend equpped with those. Searching previous posts on this (and other) sites will sure provide more details. Good luck!

Well the saga continues the O/D light seams to be fixed or not an issue atm. But they were also able to tell me that my EGR valve is not opening what ever that means. Anyhow my question now is where the heck is it located is it something i can deal with or is it a mechanic issue?

 

[AP9]

To add to that: Do not attempt to remove the EGR valve unless you absolutely have to. I'm speaking from experience as well as echoing other threads on here. The EGR tube will likely be brittle and you may end up twisting up and kinking the tube, creating an exhaust leak, especially since the compression nuts can be extremely stubborn to release.

If you know for a fact/100% certain that the EGR valve is stuck closed, you really don't have a choice. It's not the easiest thing in the world to replace but it's doable if you have the patience. For the reasons I just mentioned, you might as well just have all the parts of the EGR system on hand just in case -- EGR valve and gasket, EGR inlet tube, EGR compression nut fitting (connects exhaust to EGR inlet tube), and maybe even DPFE hoses.